Rubber heel



May 28, 1929. J. R. GAMMETER RUBBER HEEL Filed July 18, 1928 N V EN TOR. I

A TTORNEY.

Patented May 28, 1929.

UNITED STATES JOHN R. GAMMETER, OF AKRON, OHIO.

RUBBER HEEL.

Application filed July 18. 1928. Serial No. 293,515.

This invention relates to rubber heels and has for its object to provide improved means embedded within the heel body for retaining the heads of the attaching'nails.

While the retaining device which I employ might be incorporatedin the heel body during the molding process, one of the advantages of the invention in its preferred form consists in the fact that the retaining means may be located in the heel after the lat ter'has been ess the heel body is provided with a series of parallel narrow holes or wire sockets 11, open at one end at the breast edge 12, these sockets being spaced apart a distance less than the width of the heads of the nails 13 used for attaching the heel to the shoe. In the sockets are mounted a series of individual or isolated, metallic rods or wires 14, preferably of highcarbon steel of about .037 inch diameter to serve as a nail-retaining means.

While it would be possible to use wire mandrels in the mold for forming the sockets 11 during the process of vulcanization, I prefer, as stated, to make the sockets after the heel has been vulcanized. This may be done with a piercing operation, without substantial ref'lii'oval of stock, by employing drills which tear their way through the vulcanized rubber.

The drills are somewhat larger in diameter than the wires 14, and when withdrawn they leave holes with rough Walls which practically close together.

After forming the sockets 11, the wires 14 areforced into said sockets until their trailing ends have receded within the heel body a short distance from the breast edge 12 as indicated in Fig. 1, these wires being of graduated lengths so that their rear ends collectively assume a curved or arcuate formation, subitarlrti-ally parallel to the edge contour of the The heel may be molded with vertical apertures extending to'the wires 14, for receiving the nails, or the heel body may beleft solid and the nails driven therethrough until their heads encounter the wires, as represented in Fig. 2. Since the wires have a closer spacing than the diameters of the nail heads, they constitute an effective retaining means. The structure is such that the positionof the nails within the field of wires is immaterial, for, if a nail point happens to strike a wire it will glance off and continue through with but very little relative displacement. In this respect my invention presents a decided advantage over the use of embedded washers where any substantial misalignment of the entering nails with the apertures in the washers will spoil the attachment. Molding the heel without washers enables me to employ a machinefilled mold which opens at the seating face so that the flash may be buffed off while the heels are still in the mold cavities. I

It will be understood that suitable variations may be effected in the precise mode of carrying my invention into effect without departing from the scope of the claims.

. I claim:

1. A rubber. heel having a nail-head retaining structure comprising a multiplicity of individual embedded wires collectively adapted to retain the heads of nails inserted in a zone surrounding the central portion of the heel.- 2. A rubber heel having a nail-head retaining structure consisting of a series of closely spaced, parallel, individual wires embedded in the heel body. I

v 3. A rubber heel comprising a rubber cushion body formed with a series of closelyspaced, parallel wire sockets opening on the breast edge of the heel, and individual wires occupying said sockets and terminating at 7 their forward ends short of said breast edge. In witness whereof'I have hereunto set my hand this 17th day of July, 1928.

JOHN R. GAMMETER. 

